a. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for lifting liquids from a floor or other surface, and, more particularly, to a suction-operated extraction device that can vacuum up a liquid while preventing the liquid from being drawn into the suction generator.
b. Background Art
A variety of suction powered devices have been developed for lifting a liquid from a surface, such as lifting a spill from a carpet or other floor surface, for example. In general, it is undesirable for the liquid to pass through to the motor or other device that generates the suction, which is typically designed to handle only air. Accordingly, a persistent problem is effectively separating the liquid from the air prior to the flow reaching the suction generator.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,224 discloses a wet vacuum attachment for vacuum cleaners that is designed to be attached to the end of a vacuum hose, in order to remove and separate fluid so that the fluid does not enter the vacuum unit. The attachment has a housing with an outlet that can be coupled to the vacuum hose, and an inlet that can engage a working surface to remove the fluid with an air stream created by the vacuum unit. Attached to the housing is a tank that stores the fluid as it is removed from the working surface. Within the tank is a first passage that provides communication between the housing inlet and the tank, and a second passage that provides communication from the tank to the housing outlet. Located in front of the first passage is a wall that deflects the fluid down into the tank, while the air flows into the second passage.
The present invention is directed to improvements in such devices. For example, the ability of the device of the '224 patent to separate a liquid such as water from the airflow was less than desirable, with the result that more moisture than desired would be carried back through the hose to the vacuum cleaner itself. Furthermore, the operation was not automatic, but rather required the operation of a trigger mechanism, which may not always be convenient. Corresponding disadvantages are shared by other wet vacuum devices in the prior art.